15. It is the author’s view that ________.

　　A) speaking up for oneself is part of human nature

　　B) self-promotion does not necessarily mean flattery

　　C) hard work contributes very little to one’s promotion

　　D) many employees fail to recognize the need of flattery(B)

　　這篇材料的主要內容是辦公室政治(office politics)，從介紹辦公室政治的含義、好處開始，講到現實生活中人們不愿進行辦公室政治的現象及其原因，最后給出了改變這種情況的建議。

　　前面的幾段主要是介紹辦公室政治的含義及其所能帶來的好處。前三個句子以A、B、C打頭列出了辦公室生存的基本原則，而后把辦公室政治作為它們的補充自然地提了出來(為了與ABC相搭配，簡稱為P)。作者引用Carnegie的話對辦公室政治做了初步的定義，也就是be able to sell yourself and your ideas, both publicly and behind the scenes，無論公開非公開場合，都要能夠推銷你自己和你自己的想法。后面緊接著的一句話一箭雙雕，既說出了辦公室政治的好處(a better job, a raise, praise)，也指出人們不愿搞辦公室政治的事實，為下文分析原因、提出建議鋪好了道路。

　　后面的幾段主要是來分析辦公室政治在一些人那里不受歡迎的原因。首先人們把它看做是工于心計的行為(manipulative behavior)，而后作者對這一原因做了評析，指出辦公室政治實際上并不如此(反而源于polite，禮貌)。下一段介紹專家的觀點，進一步解釋辦公室政治的含義和應用的正當性，而后引用Neil P Lewis的話對此做了強調(It’s simple human nature，辦公室政治是人類的天性而已)。

　　最后一段簡單地給出了建議：承認自我的推銷的需要(recognizing the need for some self-promotion)。

　　Passage Two

　　Questions 16 to 20 are based on the following passage.

　　As soon as it was revealed that a reporter for Progressive magazine had discovered how to make a hydrogen bomb, a group of firearm (火器) fans formed the National Hydrogen Bomb Association, and they are now lobbying against any legislation to stop Americans from owning one.

　　“The Constitution,” said the association’s spokesman, “gives everyone the right to own arms. It doesn’t spell out what kind of arms. But since anyone can now make a hydrogen bomb, the public should be able to buy it to protect themselves.”

　　“Don’t you think it’s dangerous to have one in the house, particularly where there are children around?”

　　“The National Hydrogen Bomb Association hopes to educate people in the safe handling of this type of weapon. We are instructing owners to keep the bomb in a locked cabinet and the fuse (導火索) separately in a drawer.”

　　“Some people consider the hydrogen bomb a very fatal weapon which could kill somebody.”

　　The spokesman said, “Hydrogen bombs don’t kill people—people kill people. The bomb is for self-protection and it also has a deterrent effect. If somebody knows you have a nuclear weapon in your house, they’re going to think twice about breaking in.”

　　“But those who want to ban the bomb for American citizens claim that if you have one locked in the cabinet, with the fuse in a drawer, you would never be able to assemble it in time to stop an intruder (侵入者).”

　　“Another argument against allowing people to own a bomb is that at the moment it is very expensive to build one. So what your association is backing is a program which would allow the middle and upper classes to acquire a bomb while poor people will be left defenseless with just handguns.”

　　16. According to the passage, some people started a national association so as to ________.

　　A) block any legislation to ban the private possession of the bomb

　　B) coordinate the mass production of the destructive weapon

　　C) instruct people how to keep the bomb safe at home

　　D) promote the large-scale sale of this newly invented weapon(A)

　　17. Some people oppose the ownership of H-bombs by individuals on the grounds that ________.

　　A) the size of the bomb makes it difficult to keep in a drawer

　　B) most people don’t know how to handle the weapon

　　C) people’s lives will be threatened by the weapon

　　D) they may fall into the hands of criminals(C)